Product: Fortte Lateral Pouch for 8700, in Brandy Brown leather with fixed leather wrapped clip.
Price: $40.99 USD ($32.99 for case + $8.00 for custom color scheme)
URL: www.fortte.com

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To read my review of the Fortte Vertical Pouch case, click here.

Review:
This case was shipped in a nice display box, wrapped in plastic. This one is a custom color pattern called Brandy Brown. The main portion of the case is a dark reddish-brown color, and the flap and back portions are a dark tan color. The inside has a thick felt lining offering lots of protection. The flap has a magnetic snap closure with the logo embossed and their small metal emblem above it.

Click images to enlarge:




It has the fixed, leather wrapped belt clip, and it is very strong and will fit almost any sized belt. It has a very low profile when worn, and does not rub into your hip at all. Overall, very easy to wear with little notice it is there. The case has a sleeper magnet that works perfectly, allowing you to insert the device either face in or face out - your choice.




Rating: I give this case 4 out of 5 Berries.




Conclusion: This case is another example of Fortte's strive for perfection. You can tell by the excellent materials and design that they really care about what they provide to customers. For those lateral pouch lovers out there, your search for the ultimate case ends here. Except for those lefties out there - this case design is made with the righties in mind, so I strongly suggest you lefties contact the manufacturer and request additioanl magnet placements.

Pros: Very stylish, exceptional materials, customizeable color combinations, perfect low profile belt clip, affordable, sleeper magnet allows insertion in either direction.

Cons: Some may not like a gold emblem on the front of their case, otherwise it's almost perfect, aside from magnet placement only being for right-handed people.

Thanks for the review Seattle, I just ordered one.

I have one on it's way! Looking forward to it!

Thanks!

Seattle18,

I just received this case for my father and myself. We aren't confident that the sleeper magnet is working. Which way should the BB be inserted?

Thanks!

It should work regardless of which way you insert the device. My case allows me to insert either direction. Put it in there and then pull it slightly away from the case and peek to see if the screen is on or off.

Ah-ha. I have found the issue. We wear our BB's on our left hip. The case is designed to have the BB with the top facing to the right as you are looking at the clasp on the case. If you insert the BB 180 degrees in the opposite direction with the top facing to the left the sleeper magnet does not work. The BB stays on.

As a design note, Fortte should have placed magnets on both sides.

A single magnet can still do the job, so long as it is strong enough, it will work on either side of the device. Like I said earlier, the Fortte I have allows insertion in either direction.

Interesting. I will have to call Fortte on this. I tested as you suggested and it definitely did not go to sleep when turned the other way.

Thank you for your help!

Great Review - I've just ordered mine. Thanks.

Hmm I miust have missed this review before I ordered mine. I am expecting mine any day now. I actually asked Fortte to forego the inclusion of their logos on the outside of my case.

Just wanted to update my previous post and say that I received the case but I am not too thrilled about it and am looking to sell now. It seems the flap on mine is a bit longer than I prefer, therefore leaving more room than I care for. I also made a bad choice by ordering the removable ratchetable clip as it does stick off the waist more.

I just received mine. While I like the case overall, I find it awkward as the sleeper magnet is at one end only. As I do wear it on my left side, the blackberry has to be pointing towards my back for the magnet to work.

It means twisting the 8700c before putting it in the case. I guess I will get used to it but right now it feels awkward. How hard would it have been to place a magnet at both ends especially as this is a premium priced case.

Just received my Fortte Lateral Pouch for 8700. Overall nice case.

CONS: No opening to change while in case. Charging you have to remove from case or make sure you have USB port upward so that you can open snap to charge.

Have you emailed Support to see about a special order?

If you ordered a standard case they may be able to take it back into stock.

Thank you for your input. It is always important to know what customers' experieces are with our cases and this is a classic case where us engineers did not think of all the details.
We are considering installing a magnet on either side of the lateral pouches so that the situation described does not happen.
Thank you again

I did contact support. They offered to sell me a custom case with the magnet on both sides for a reduced cost. They did not offer to take back the case they sent me.

Besides the fact that the custom case would have taken weeks to arrive, I didn't feel I wanted to shell out more money for a case that wasn't designed properly the first time. If they had offered to do even a switch, I would have been happy.

But, I have sort of gotten used to the twist and flip every time I put the 8700 into the case or take it out.

is there any point to rate these fortte cases anymore? They all get 5 berries!
It should more be an advertisement for fortte then a review!

Even though the initial review is 5 berries, doesn't mean it is 5 berries for you. I woulnt rate this 5 berries because there is only a magnet on one side. For a few cents added production cost, this could have been avoided.

It is a beautiful case but in it's current configuration, only 4 berries in my book.

I wouldn't rate the one I received as 5 berries either. The fit is not as good as the StIL which I also purchased.

Let me address a couple things here.

This case is properly designed the first time. Just because it does not have extra magnets on every side of it does not mean it is ill-designed. The requirements for a working case is that is puts the BB to sleep when inserted into the case. This one does that when inserted in two different facing directions. But to make it a properly working case in your eyes it must anticipate every possible person's preference (nice alliteration...), and place magnets everywhere. Would it have been nice to do so? Yes. Is it required? No. Is it even expected? No. There isn't a single case available with magnets as you describe. I think that you should have anticipated this possibility when placing an order and asked them specifically where the magnets are and how many there are. Then you could have specifically requested extra in locations you deem necessary. That would have avoided this whole issue.

There is always a reason to rate them, not every case receives 5 berries. In the Fortte instances, they usually do because they are made with such quality and adhere to the highest standards in case design. I have reviewed tons of cases, from several different companies, and I can tell you that doing all of that testing has shown me every possible deisgn flaw imaginable. And generally, Fortte does not have these flaws. Some companies, as hard as this is to believe, do NOT have ANY magnets in them. Others design the case so that the front flap closes perfectly, when empty, but when the BB is in it it does not close well. Others have had the ratcheting clip interfering with the snap closures on the bac of the case itself, rendering the rotating feature useless! And yet others only use one color and one type of leather. And my favorite is the company we all know of that initially made cases with glue that came apart in a couple weeks! So with all that in mind, find me faulty issues with these Fortte cases that make them poorly made, I challenge you. They use top quality leather, offer TONS of color options, will customize them any way you like (when asked to, egale), have several types of clip options, are made to specific sizes based on devices (some companies make a case for several different device sizes), and are affordable. For these reasons they usually will receive the highest marks.

Lastly - these are NOT official reviews, they are only MY OPINIONS, nothing more! Please read each one carefully, analyze the info I provide, call the company yourself and ask questions, and ask me personally for further information you may have thought of in the process. I will help in any way II can to help you come to YOUR OWN conclusion about the case and it's potential to satisfy you. My opiion is not the word of God, it's just an opinion. And obviously I think Fortte makes the best cases available right now. Further, I thnk their STiL is the best one they offer, for me. I have four of them...

Seattle - egale is justified to express dissatisfaction in a universal horizontal case which allows for 4 different orientations of placing the BB into it. There is no dedicated 'top' and 'bottom' which tailor the case to only allow the BB to be inserted a certain way.

Further, Salo showed the integrity we would all like to see in an engineer, and production company, in recognizing this oversight. Now, if only my engineers could borrow Salo's spine, I'd be a much happier camper.